Spring Thaw
by Pir8grl
Summary: CC Contemporary Sleeping Beauty AU So, there was this gorgeous piece of fanart depicting the Disney princesses in modern clothing. Aurora *really* reminded me of Caity, but no way could I see Sara as the sleeping princess just waiting for some guy to rescue her…so we've got a bit of role reversal…among other things. Thank you (as always!) to stillthewordgirl.


**Starling Kingdom**

The Princess Sara had always been a bit of a disappointment. Her elder sister Laurel was the Pretty One, the one who excelled at her lessons and deported herself as a perfect lady. Sara was the Wild One - the one who climbed trees and broke rules (and windows). The one who ran away from home, and had adventures all over the world, picking up a collection of skills that would horrify her lady mother if she ever realized their true extent.

Sara had recently returned home to find her kingdom on the brink of ruin, her beloved sister murdered by an evil sorcerer, and her parents occupying separate apartments - at separate ends of the castle. It was almost enough to make her run away again, except she couldn't do that - she could not just turn away and let her home be destroyed.

She looked up from the bag she was packing at the diffident tap on her door.

"Enter!" she called, as she slid the pack under her bed.

"You sent for me, Princess?"

"Yeah, Jax. Thanks for coming."

"Um…it's sorta my job."

Sara grinned. "My bike is hidden in that old cave that's marked 'Danger, Keep Out,' about a quarter mile north of the gates. Think you can sneak out there and fuel it for me?"

"I could…if I wanna get thrown in the dungeon. Besides, they'll never let you out the gates. Or the door, for that matter." He crossed his arms with a disapproving frown.

"I'm not going out the door, or the gate," Sara told him. "And what's with the face?"

Jax just shook his head. "Look - I know you've always done your own thing, but how can you run out on us now, when everyone's counting on you to save the kingdom?"

"I _**am**_ going to save the kingdom," Sara said firmly. "Just not the way everyone else expects. So can I count on you, or not?"

Jax stared at her for a long moment. "Everyone says you're so different from your sister. I dunno - I'm just a mechanic - but maybe different is what's gonna save us."

"That's what I'm hoping. And Jax - when you go to the cave, keep to the right hand edge of the path."

"Or what? The floor'll give out on me?"

"No. You'll get caught in the snare that I set."

* * *

Sara moved carefully through the underbrush to her hideaway. True to his word, Jax was there, checking the tires on her bike. The bike was a gorgeous shade of electric blue, a near match for the sleek leather jacket she wore.

"This is a beauty," Jax commented. "I've never seen one quite like her."

"You wouldn't have. It was custom built, somewhere very far away."

"I bet I could replicate it."

Sara smiled fondly at the younger man. "I bet you could, but right now, I need to ride it. If you leave at the same time as me, the noise from your bike should distract anyone trying to follow me."

"Yeah…about that. I'm coming with you."

"No, you're not."

"Hey, it's my home too! I wanna help."

Sara turned to him with a slightly sad smile. "Jax, I know you mean well, but where I'm going is dangerous. You could get hurt…or worse."

"I can take care of myself," he replied stubbornly. "But what're you gonna do if your bike breaks down on the way to - where are we going, anyway?"

Sara huffed impatiently, but the younger man held his ground. "Fine. I'm going to the Central Kingdom. Still want to come?"

"The Sleeping Prince? Seriously? Why don't you just marry Sir Thomas, like everyone wants?" Jax suddenly pressed his lips together. "Crap. I'm sorry. Your Highness, I should never have - "

"Hey. Jax. It's fine. Just…don't call me that, all right?"

"What? You mean Your -"

"Jax. Stop it." Sara heaved a sigh. "All right, if you're gonna come with, you have a right to know. The reason I don't want to marry Tommy - _like everyone wants_ \- is because if I do, his father will be the one really running things. My father can't stand up to him. Lord Malcolm will turn the entire kingdom into his personal estate. I'm not gonna let that happen."

"OK. I get that. But how is chasing after some legend in another kingdom better?"

Sara sighed again. "I figure, if I can save their prince, that's worth something, right? Worth enough to get our kingdom back on its feet."

"Uh huh. But what if they say you've got to marry him, instead? I mean, that's sort of a thing for royalty, isn't it? How is marrying some strange dude better than marrying one you've known all your life?"

"I met Prince Leonard once, when I was a little girl. I wanted some apples from a tree, but I was too little to reach them."

"So he was…what? All chivalrous and picked some for you?" Jax guessed.

"No. He boosted me up so I could pick my own. Then he showed me how to climb trees, so I could get apples whenever I wanted. The point is, I think I could work something out with him."

Jax shrugged. "Only one way to find out."

* * *

 **Central Kingdom**

"Are you sure about this, Prin-Sara," Jax hastily corrected himself, looking around the tavern dubiously. "These people don't look to be much better off than the folks at home. And besides, doesn't the legend say that there's a wicked thorn hedge protecting the castle?"

"There's a master armorer here who's said to make amazing things. Maybe he can help."

"Good luck with that, Blondie. Master Ramon is frozen inside the castle, along with the rest of the royal court."

The speaker was a burly man with a shaven head, who Sara suspected was nowhere near as drunk as he appeared. She motioned the bartender to refill his glass.

"Do you know where we might be able to put our hands on any of his weapons, outside of the castle?"

"Got one right here," the man replied, patting the strange gun strapped to his side. He downed a shot, then peered at them shrewdly. "Yer gonna have a go at breaking into the castle, aren't ya?"

"Maybe," Sara replied, downing her own shot.

"Look, miss. You look like you can handle yerself, but there's only two of Ramon's guns outside the castle, and neither of 'em can get through that hedge."

"How is it that you know so much?" Sara asked curiously.

"Because I'm Prince Leonard's Master at Arms, that's how."

"You can't be too good at it, if you're out here, and he's in there," Jax blurted.

"Watch it, fella -"

"Now, now, Mick. I'm sure he didn't mean that quite the way it came out, did you?" The woman who slid onto the bar stool next to Mick had long, sugar-brown curls, and a pretty, heart-shaped face. She also wore one of those guns.

"Actually…yeah, I did," Jax replied, defiantly.

"When the boss realized just how bad things could get with the Legion of Doom, he ordered me to get his sister to safety."

"That would be me," the brunette stated.

"So that would make you a princess?" Sara surmised.

"Yes, but you can call me Lisa."

Jax looked from one woman to the other in disbelief. "You know, in all those stories, the princesses wear pretty dresses and live in castles, not ride motorcycles and hang out in roadside taverns."

Lisa looked Sara over carefully. "I know most of the royalty in the area. I've never met you. That must make you Princess Sara of Starling. The one who ran off to see the world?"

"That's right."

"And what makes you think you can save my brother, when everyone who's tried has failed?"

"I'm highly motivated. And I never run from a fight."

Jax had been staring at the bar top, lost in thought. "You said neither of the guns would work on that hedge," he said suddenly. "What do they do?"

"Mine shoots fire," Mick replied. "But the hedge is magical, so it just grows right back."

"Mine turns things to gold, but that just makes it more impenetrable," Lisa added.

Jax considered that a moment. "Have you ever tried using them together?"

"How'd you mean?" Lisa asked curiously.

"I mean, what if he burns a hole in the hedge, and you turn it to gold, before the magic can regrow it?"

Lisa elbowed Mick. "How come you never thought of that?"

Sara chuckled. "Jax is a mechanic. He figures out how to make things work."

"OK. Say that gets us through the hedge. Then what? We don't know how many spells are between the hedge and my brother. And that's another thing. Damien Darhk stitched up his spell pretty tightly. My brother can only be awoken by True Love's Kiss. Lenny...he never really let many people close. Not since…" Lisa stared at Sara. "You've never even met him. How's that going to work?"

"Actually, I have. He came on a state visit to Starling when I was a little girl. He was nice to me, even though I was just the horrid little sister."

"Yeah, that sounds like Lenny," Lisa confirmed, smiling.

"But that's not True Love," Jax objected.

Sara turned to Lisa. "It's not me. It's you. A sister's love. I know how powerful that can be."

* * *

Jax's plan worked to get them inside the hedge. Once inside the castle grounds, however, Lisa cried out in dismay.

"These were my mother's gardens," she choked out, gazing around at the withered plants, rimed with frost, despite the season.

Mick laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "The prince kept the gardens just the way the queen left them," he explained for Sara's benefit. "But the Legion…they said if he wouldn't wield his cold gun for them, they'd give him more cold than he could handle. Looks like they meant it."

Jax had wandered a bit away, and he let out a sudden yelp. The others rushed to his side and stared in horror at a gardener, frozen in mid-task.

"If we break the spell, will everyone else come back?" Sara wondered.

"That's what the legend says," Lisa replied dubiously.

There was a sizzle and crackle of bright yellow energy, and Jax found himself laid out flat on the ground.

"Thawne! Damn speedster!" Mick spat, drawing his gun. He sent a blast of fire after the blur, which coalesced into a man.

"I _**like**_ the heat," he sneered.

Lisa coolly aimed her weapon and enveloped him in gold, but he vibrated it apart. Sara launched herself at the speedster, and managed to score a hit or two with her batons before he took off again.

"Was he slowing down? Just a little?" Jax wondered, shaking his head to clear it.

"Maybe," Sara replied, climbing to her feet.

"We need Lenny's cold gun," Lisa said urgently. "Cold and speed are opposites."

"Any idea where he is?" Sara asked, eying the labyrinthine castle.

"Throne room," Mick said quietly.

"How do you know?" Jax wondered.

"Thawne and Darhk and Merlyn are all very fond of making long-winded speeches," Lisa replied. They made damn sure all the common folk in the area knew what became of their prince." She looked down at the ground. "Our father, he was…"

"I know," Sara said simply. "My father didn't trust him."

Mick cleared his throat gruffly. "The prince, he was tryin' to turn this place around, undo King Lewis's damage. The Legion thought the prince would fall right in with their schemes, same as the king, but he's way smarter than his father."

Sara grinned. "Let's go put him back on his throne."

There was another flash of yellow light, and the four found themselves scattered on the ground. Again.

"Man, I really hate that guy," Jax muttered, picking himself up, then offering Sara a hand.

The castle was shabby and run down, but Sara noticed places where work was being done to make repairs. In some of those places, the workers were frozen, mid-task.

"Our father let the place go to hell," Lisa explained, noticing Sara's scrutiny. "Lenny was trying to fix things. He hired local men to do the work, and paid them enough to take proper care of their families."

Jax was studying a tall marble column that was cracked near the base. "This needs to be shored up, first, before it falls and kills someone," he mused. "It's beautiful, though. Too good to let it go to waste."

"Ooohh, Lenny will like you. Wanna come work for us?" Lisa asked lightly.

"Le's get this place thawed out first," Sara replied, chuckling. "But for the record, Jax is free to work for whomever he chooses."

"Whatever she's paying, we'll double it," Mick rumbled.

"Hey!"

The banter died away as they entered the throne room. Seated on the his throne, hands folded over his cold gun, Prince Leonard was every bit as striking as Sara remembered. Little-her had thought he had the prettiest eyes of any boy she'd seen. The urge to see those eyes again was so overwhelming that she took an involuntary step closer, then caught herself, and gestured Lisa forward.

"Are you sure?" Lisa teased. "I can't imagine he'd object to waking up to a beautiful princess kissing him."

"Hell, I'll kiss him, if it'll get the job done!" Mick growled.

"I think this one's on you, Lisa," Sara replied.

Lisa stepped up onto the dais, then leaned in and pressed her lips to her brother's forehead. As they watched, the frost melted off of Leonard's still form. Color returned to his face and he gasped in a sharp inhalation. His eyes focused slowly on Lisa and he grinned.

"Hello, sis," he said softly.

"Lenny!" she squealed, throwing herself into his arms. His sharp eyes spied movement over Lisa's shoulder.

"Move!" he said sharply, pushing her out of the way and rising and drawing his gun. The others ducked as a blast of blue light enveloped the speedster, turning him to a rather unattractive ice sculpture…which Mick promptly shattered.

"Good to have you back, Boss," Mick rumbled, clasping hands with his prince.

"And who might these be?" Leonard asked, eyeing Sara and Jax appraisingly.

"Lenny, this is Princess Sara of Starling, and her friend, Jax. They're the ones who figured out how to rescue you."

"It seems I'm in your debt," Leonard drawled, something very warm in his tone and gaze.

"It was a team effort," Sara demurred.

Mick glanced shrewdly from Leonard to Sara. "Come along, kids. We need to check and see that everyone else is waking up."

Jax stared at his princess for a long moment. "Riiiiight. We should do that."

Lisa grinned and winked at her brother, then kissed his cheek softly before following the others out of the room.

Sara and Leonard contemplated one another in silence.

"Isn't this the part where the prince and princess kiss?" Leonard finally drawled.

Sara grinned, and quirked an eyebrow. "You wanna steal a kiss from me, Leonard?"

"That's one thing I prefer not to steal, as it happens. Although I am surprised you didn't take advantage of my…predicament."

Sara sucked in a shaky breath. "The legend said it had to be True Love's Kiss. I figured a sister's love was a better bet than a kiss from someone you might not even remember meeting."

Leonard stepped closer. "I remember pigtails and freckles and skinned knees."

"Your father thought I belonged to one of the staff."

"I didn't care. We were there to negotiate a marriage between me and your sister, but…I think I liked you better. Laurel wouldn't climb trees with me."

A shadow passed over Sara's face, and Leonard winced.

"I'm sorry. That was…"

Sara looked up at him and smiled, even though a tear trickled down her cheek. "It's OK. That was a happy time."

"Our people deserve more happy times, but it's going to take a lot of work to undo the Legion's mischief."

"Is that a challenge, Leonard?"

"If you like."

"I think…there's a lot of things I'd like."

"Good."

Sara was startled at just how much heat that one single word - not to mention those amazing blue eyes - contained. Leonard smirked, just a tiny bit, as he caught her hand, then raised it to his lips.

"Awright, you two!" Mick bellowed from the corridor, "this kingdom ain't gonna save itself!"

Leonard still hadn't relinquished possession of Sara's hand. "What say we find out what the future holds for me, and you?"

"And me and you?"

"Excellent idea."

 _ **The Beginning.**_


End file.
